Exam 4
Describe Milgram's obedience experiments and summarize his results.
You draw straw to get teacher or student. "Teacher" Shocks the the "Student" (who is working for the experimenter) For every wrong answer the student gets shocked by the teacher.
Discuss how the emotion theories of Schachter & Singert, Lazarus, Zajonc, and LeDoux relate to the two-track brain concept presented in the text
Zajonc and LeDoux emphasize that some emotional responses are intermediate, before any conscious approval. Lazarus Schachter and Singer emphasized that our appraisal and labeling of events also determine our emotional responses.
Explain the difference between informational social influence and normative social influence.
INFORMATIONAL SOCIAL INFLUENCE: influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality NORMATIVE SOCIAL INFLUENCE: influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval
What is the out-group homogeneity effect (presented in lecture) and how is different from in-group bias?
Out - Group Homogeneity Bias Outsiders are seen as "all the same" In Group Bias Insiders given more of a break
What is group polarization?
When people withing a group discuss and idea that most of them like of oppose
What are the three different names given to the developing human being prior to birth and when are these names applied?
Zygote: Conception - 2 Weeks Embryo: 2 - 8 Weeks (human like features appear) Fetus: 9 Weeks to Birth (human parts start to develop and become full affect)
Describe the positive psychology movement and what aspect of human behavior it emphasizes.
health
Describe three reflexes that newborn infants show.
-Sucking: The sucking reflex is probably one of the most important reflexes your newborn has, especially when you pair it with the rooting reflex. If you touch the roof of your baby's mouth with your finger, a pacifier or a nipple, he will instinctively begin sucking, it is soothing -Rooting: (automatically turn the face toward the stimulus and make sucking (rooting) motions with the mouth when the cheek or lip is touched. The rooting reflex helps to ensure successful breast feeding). -Grasping:If you place your finger or other slim object in your baby's palm, his fingers will grasp the object tightly.
List Piaget's four stages in his model of cognitive development.
-[Sensorimotor]: (birth to two years) Object permanence (chewing/ sucking on things) - [Preoperational] (2-6 years) start understanding tomorrow/ yesterday Egocentrism ( difficulty taking the perspective in of another person), conservation - [Concrete Operational] (7-11) (not egocentric, can take the perspective other other people) Hypothetical problem solving - [Formal Operational](12-adult)
Contrast the roles of the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system with regard to our emotional responses.
- Sympathetic - heart rate increase; - para - decrease heart rate. - Some organs respond differently to same division - para - bladder muscles contract; relax internal urethral sphincter. - Most organs have enervation from both para and symp. - Secrete different neurotransmitters, have different receptors.
Describe Schachter & Singer's two-factor theory of emotion and Lazarus's cognitive appraisal theory of emotion (the second theory was presented in lecture).
According to this theory, an event causes physiological arousal first. You must then identify a reason for this arousal and then you are able to experience and label the emotion. EVENT---> COGNITIVE LABEL/APPRAISAL (BACK AND FOURTH FORCES BEFORE BODY REACTS)--->BODY AND BEHAVIOR RESPONSE----> CONSCIOUS EMOTION appraisal- how you think of this moment (making sense of whats going on before you react) by changing the body you change the cognitive label and thus change the emotion
To what does the term temperament refer? What are three different types of temperaments with which babies can be born
An inborn predisposition to consistently behave or react in a certain way EASY: 40% show mostly positive emotions, regular sleeping and eating patterns SLOW-TO-WARM-UP (15%): low activity levels, tend to withdraw from novelty, adapt slowly to change DIFFICULT (10%): irregular sleeping and eating patterns, show most intense negative emotions
The concept of deindividuation claims that people will lose both self-awareness and self-restraint when placed in situations that have what two characteristics?
Arousal and anonymity. To become deindividuated is to become more responsive to the group experience.
What are three situational factors that increase obedience?
Authority figure is legit, Learner distant and depersonalized, Authority figure is close, No role models of defiance
According to evidence discussed in the text and presented in lecture, what is the favorite visual stimulus of newborns?
Baby's eyes can only detect large contrasts between light and dark, or black and white. The best stimulation for your baby's vision is using black and white or high-contrast stripes and shapes. they also prefer faces
Are facial expressions of emotion learned or biologically determined?
Both making and recognizing facial expressions appear to be hard wired (biologically). research: according to science news sanfransisco state university a study provided evidence explaining facial exprssions of emotions are hardwired into our genes. the study demonstrated that sighted and blind individuals use the same facial expressions and produce the same facial muscle movement in resoonse to a stimulus
Contrast central route persuasion with peripheral route persuasion.
CENTRAL ROUTE PERSUASION: attitude-change path in which interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts. PERIPHERAL ROUTE PERSUASION: attitude-change path in which people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness.
Lazarus's cognitive appraisal theory of emotion
Everything runs through the cognitive label EVENT--->BODY--->EMOTION (ALL THROUGH THE LABEL-thinking what is happening to you)
Describe the fundamental attribution error and the self-serving bias.
FUNDAMENTAL ATTRIBUTION ERROR: the tendency to underestimate situational factors and to overestimate personal factors when explaining the behaviors of others. i.e if our new friend acts grouchy, we may decide she's a grouchy person, when actually her grouchiness could reflect her current situation that we are not aware of. *for ourselves we go situational, but for others we often go to personal factors. SELF-SERVING BIAS: tendency to attribute one's successes to personal factors and one's failures to situational factors (seen more often in individualistic cultures)
What are five research-based suggestions from the text for improving your mood, life satisfaction, and overall happiness (more than five are presented).
act happy, command time well, focus on being yourself, spiritual self, prioritize relationships
Briefly describe the results of the Stanford Prison experiment and how it illustrates the power of the roles people play in various situations.
In a fake set up of a prison, men were given positions to be a guard or a prisoner. Although they were simply positions, each man assigned to a position would play the part. The men well adapted to their roles; guards enforced authoritarian measures and ultimately subjected some of the prisoners to psychological torture. Many of the prisoners passively accepted psychological abuse and, at the request of the guards, readily harassed other prisoners who attempted to prevent it. shows how strong obedience can be when provided a specific social and institutional support
Describe a major criticism of Piaget's theory of cognitive development?
action-oriented approach. Piaget believes that physical manipulation of external objects is essential for normal cognitive development.
A principle called ____________________ argues that we make to make judgments relative to previous experiences we have had. In other words, satisfaction and dissatisfaction are relative and both are strongly determined by our recent experience.
adaptation- level phenomenon.
Name and describe the key differences between the four different parenting styles (two types of "permissive" parenting were discussed in lecture). Which style is associated with the most positive child outcomes? Which style is associated with the least positive child outcomes? What is the relevance of the "third variable problem" to interpreting these findings?
PERMISSIVE-INDIFFERENT: Do not care are and are indifferent for what child does, and does not impose any rules. Future kids tend to be more aggressive and immature. AUTHORITARIAN: parents impose rules and expect obedience. Children in future tend to be less social and have a lower self-esteem.PERMISSIVE-INDULGENT: submit to the children's desires. Future kids are more aggressive and immature AUTHORITATIVE: parents are both demanding and responsive. They exert control by setting rules and enforcing them, but they also explain the reasons for rules, and allow open discussion. research indicated that children with the highest self-esteem, self-reliance, and social competence usually have authoritative parents.*** The relevance to the third variable problem is the fact that parenting styles are not solely the main cause for the outcomes of these children, there are other factors influencing these behaviors.
How do preconventional, conventional, and postconventional moral reasoning differ?
PRECONVENTIAL: (4-10 years) moral= avoids punishment or obtains concrete rewards to justify actions CONVENTIONAL: (10-13 years) moral= gains approval, avoids disapproval, or stated by laws and rules. Searches relativity to other people POSTCONVENTIONAL: (13- adult) moral= legal/societal principles or "universal" principles like justice or the values of human life.
Define the term emotion.
Positive and negative feeling states consisting of these patterns: -Physiological arousal -Expressive behavior -Conscious experience
What are four brain structures involved in emotion (presented in lecture)?
Prefrontal cortex- ability to regulate and control emotions (impulse control) Hypothalumus- 4 fs, fighting, fleeing, feeding, sex (aware of fear) Amygdala- able to detect and notice harm
Describe how well the following variables predict happiness: self-esteem, age, optimism, gender, friendship, sleep, physical attractiveness, exercise
Self-esteem, being optimistic, having close friends, sleep and exercise are good variables to predict happiness. Age, gender, parenthood, and physical attractiveness are variables that do not relate to happiness
What does the concept of social loafing claim about how individuals will behave when they are part of a group completing a task?
Social loafing is the tendency to reduce individual effort when working in groups compared to the individual effort expended when working alone.
Define, compare, and contrast the concepts of prejudice and stereotype.
Stereotype: A cluster of characteristics that are associated with all members of a particular group. (usually includes many characteristics that are unrelated to the actual group) Prejudice: Negative attitudes towards people who belong to a particular group. (prejudice is a particular kind of stereotype.
According to the foot-in-the-door phenomenon, what is a good first step if you want to get someone to agree to a request you plan to make of him later?
The first is to make harmless requests and then gradually escalate the demands.
Define the term cognitive dissonance and describe how it can produce attitude change.
The theory that we act to reduce the discomfort (disonance) we feel when two of our thoughts (cognitions) are inconsistent. For example, when our awareness of our attitudes and of our actions clash, we can reduce the result of dissonance by changing our attitudes. "we want to justify our contradictions and therefore change our mind about things"
How do categorization, vivid cases, and the just-world phenomenon contribute to our understanding of the roots of prejudice?
Vivid cases stay in your memory Just world phenomenon: the world is just and if they are disadvantaged they deserve it Categorization: how we put things so they make sense people dont feel bad if the world is just
What is the facial feedback hypothesis (presented in lecture) and which theory of emotion does it support?
When the muscle in our face are capable of changing emotional experience (has some influence on our mood.) it supports James Lang Theory
Does the mere presence of others enhance or impair performance? Explain your answer by referring to the concept of social facilitation.
When we are being observed, we perform well-learned task more quickly and accurately, and un-mastered tasks less quickly and accurately.
What is the "strange situation"? Describe the three styles of attachment identified by this procedure. (in lecture, we discussed two types of "insecure attachment")
an experiment where infants were placed in a strange room they have never been before to test level of attachment to their mothers. 60% displayed SECURE attachment (play comfortably and explored with the presence of mother, and distressed when she leaves), ANXIOUS-AVOIDANT: little signs that there are connections with mom. Does not seem to care when mom left, came back, or when the stranger entered the room. ANXIOUS- RESISTANT: nervous with the new place, pestering and demanding of their mothers. They cry and yell when she leaves and are mad at the mom when she comes back to fix the situation.
Describe the James-Lange theory of emotion.
argues that an event causes physiological arousal (bodily change) first and then we interpret this arousal. Only after our interpretation of the arousal can we experience emotion. If the arousal is not noticed or is not given any thought, then we will not experience any emotion based on this event. EVENT(STIMULUS)---> AROUSAL(BODY/BEHAVIOR RESPONSE)---->EMOTION
Describe the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion. What is one criticism they had of the James-Lange theory?
argues that we experience physiological arousal and emotional at the same time, but gives no attention to the role of thoughts or outward behavior. EVENT--->ACTIVITY IN BRAIN (THALAMUS ROUTING)---->2 DIFFERENT PARTS: BODY AND CONSCIOUS (EXPERIENCE) EMOTIONS. one criticism: Some emotions seem to happen quickly, before our bodies have had a chance to change (which contradicts James Lang)
What did Piaget mean by the term egocentrism and what are some examples of this type of behavior?
child's inability to see a situation from another person's point of view. According to Piaget, the egocentric child assumes that other people see, hear and feel exactly the same as the child does.
Describe Hatfield's (1988) two different types of love.
compassionate and passionate
What is the mere exposure effect and to which "most powerful predictor" of attraction is it related?
is a psychological phenomenon by which people tend to develop a preference for things merely because they are familiar with them.
Describe the other-race effect.
is the tendency to more easily recognize faces of the race that one is most familiar with (which is most often one's own race)
What exactly is a lie detector test and what are the major assumptions behind its use (in other words, how can experts tell when people are lying)?
it is a polygraph test that can determine whether you are lying or not depending on your physiology and brain waves because that is something you cant change. when your physiology changes then they know you are lying.
What is object permanence? What kind of task might a developmental psychologist use to assess whether or not a child has leaned it?
knowing that an object still exists, even if it is hidden (children when young often struggle with this concept because they have not developed these necessary parts of the brain) example:if you place a toy under a blanket, the child who has achieved object permanence knows it is there and can actively seek it. Before this stage, the child behaves as if the toy had simply disappeared (do not understand object permanence)
Which side of the frontal lobes appears to be more active when we experience negative emotions such as disgust or depression?
limbic system
Which side of the frontal lobes appears to be more active when we experience positive moods?
limbic system
What does emotion researcher Joseph LeDoux mean by the terms "low road" and "high road?" Which one of these "roads" is most relevant when trying to explain non-conscious emotional experiences?
low: pathway which is able to transmit a signal from a stimulus to the thalamus, and then to the amygdala, which then activates a fear-response in the body. This sequence works without a conscious experience of what comprises the stimulus, and it is the fast way to a bodily response. high road: is activated simultaneously. This is a slower road which also includes the cortical parts of the brain, thus creating a conscious impression of what the stimulus is.
What considerations and research evidence challenge the validity of the lie detector? What kinds of errors by experts are most likely?
our arousal is too similar from one emotion to another so its hard to know the the validity (anxiety, guilt, irritation). error sometimes when victims react emotionally to a question. if experts were judges more than 1/3 innocent would be guilty and 1/4 guilty would be innocent. The polygraph can mistaken the truth and thus the expert can wrongly accuse
Briefly describe the feel-good, do good phenomenon.
peoples tendency to be helpful (random act of kindness in some cases) when already in a good mood
While Piaget emphasized the importance of the ____________ environment for shaping development, an alternative view offered by Vygotsky emphasized importance of the ___________ environment.
physical/ social
Describe what research has revealed about the relationship between wealth and well-being. Does additional wealth always produce greater well-being and happiness?
research has revealed that to a point wealth does correlate with well-being. generally people who are rich are better off and happier the those who are poor (obviously). Once someone has enough money for comfort and security excess money effects happiness less and less. those who strive for intimacy and personal growth are better off, money cant buy everything.
According to research on attraction, do "birds of a feather flock together" or do "opposites attract?" In other words, are we more attracted to people similar to us or different from us?
similar
What are six (of a possible nine) factors that increase the odds of a person being helped?
the more people that are around, the less people act (pg 482)
What is conservation and during which of Piaget's stages is it acquired?
understanding that something stays the same in quantity even though its appearance changes. (liquid in the different beakers and tubes) To be more technical, conservation is the ability to understand that redistributing material does not affect its mass, number or volume. it occurs during the pre-operational stage.